Tears Like Stars
by MadMenagerie
Summary: 6th year seems to start off normal...until the day Hermione quits, everything.  She suddenly becomes helpless in everyway without a clue as to why. Her closest friends try and discover the horrible secret behind her strange behavior.
1. The Big Bang

**A/N: This is a story I wrote a couple years ago on hpff. I meant to add it on here when I started writing it but somehow never got around to it. Anyway let me know what you think please, reviews are my lifeblood. ^_^**

**DISCLAIMER: You can tell I do not own Harry Potter because if I did Harry and Hermoine would be making incredibly adorable and super smart babies as we speak.**

**Thank you**

**-Hunnysuckle**

Classes started a week ago, and as far as Hermione was concerned things were going as smoothly as possible. But then again, that's the kind of person she was... always up to date, always on task, and always organized. She was happy that way, it felt safe and secure; it was a good thing to have that as one less thing to worry about with Harry Potter as a best friend.

For Hermione had a great number of things to worry about already. Who or what was going to try to kill them next? Is Lord Voldemort right around every corner they pass? How will she memorize all the extra spells necessary to ensure at least the tiniest bit of their safety? What she didn't know, as she lay drifting slowly into descending consciousness, that she would never have to worry about anything ever again.

"Wake Up! Wake Up! Wake Up!," Hermione screamed at the two idiots passed out on the couches of the common room she called friends. "We have to be in class in ten minutes! Have you even done your homework? Are you even going to change your robes from yesterday? I swear! If both of you aren't up within the next two minutes I'm leaving for class without you and you can forget all about the assignments I've already completed for you!"

"Whozzat? Done homework assignments? Where?" Grumbled Ron a few seconds later from the chair by the fire, his winter hat still covering half his face. But no answer came, Hermione had already left leaving the completed assignments on the chairside table next to him. As Ron stumbled awake, still fuzzy from the amount of butterbeer drinken the night before, he kicked Harry asleep in the couch across the room and grabbed the papers. When they finally set off, still too groggy to speak, they realized Hermione was nowhere to be found.

"Did Hermione say anything about missing class today?" Wispered Harry as the boys found their seats in class five minutes late.

"Of course not! Hermione NEVER misses class. Maybe she's at the library doing some research for our potions paper and lost track of time."

"Yea. I'm sure she'll walk through the door any minute freaking out about the roll call she missed." Harry said with a laugh. And with that class began without further discussion, and halfway through the session they were so focused on making their pencils fly in Charms they didn't even realize she had never come in at all. It was then, that one of the student's pencils flew right smack dab in the middle of the forhead of a painting of a former headmaster and the entire class errupted in laughter. That gave the boys a moment to look around the classroom and noticed that not only was Hermione not there, but no one even seemed to notice she was gone. Not the students, not the teacher, no one asked where Hermione was. Harry and Ron looked at each other and wondered what on earth was going on.

As class ended and slowly dispersed, the two boys stayed behind to talk to the Charms Professor about Hermione's whereabouts.

"Didn't anyone notify you?" he asked them; fear ripping through their heart simultaniously. Harry could barely hear the professor's words as the worst possible scenarios flew through his imagination at warp at Ron who had the same expression as he did on his face, as they waited for what seemed like an eternity for the words describing what had really happened.

"She's been admitted to the hospital wing..." Harry felt suddenly nauseous, realizing that the hangover he was still nursing from the night before was certainly not helping his body prepare for the bad news he was sure he was getting.

"She's stopped talking..."


	2. Lonliness In A Crowded Room

**A/N: I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Let me know what you think, I have chapters written up to 12 for this story so I'll be posting pretty much every day. **

**Disclaimer: I woke up this morning and realized that I'm awesome, but I still don't own Harry Potter.**

* * *

><p>The door to the hospital wing flew open with a loud crash that made nearly everyone in the room jump. Just as much noise came from Harry and Ron themselves as they tried to squeeze through the door at the same time, finally shoving each other through. When they finally untangled themselves, they were mistified by what they saw. Hermione, or more like a shadow of her, sitting on the bed. Staring at them with big, brown, almost unseeing eyes. Ginny, sitting in a chair by the bed and Madam Pomfrey at her side, both looking helpless and out of place, seeing that there really wasn't anything they could do for her.<p>

As the boys approached, Ginny got up and hugged them both mumbling something about getting Hermione's work from all her classes, relieved that she finally had something she could do for her best friend.

"Hermione." Harry whispered, as he sat on the edge of her bed and took her hand.

"What happened to her?" Asked Ron, pulling up the chair next to the bed. Harry and Ron looked at each other wondering what could have happened in the ten minutes she was alone to make her emotionally helpless. It took a moment for Madam Pomfrey to answer, as she looked at Hermione staring off in to space like she didn't even realize the boys were there.

"We don't know for sure. All we can say is that someone found her in one of the hallways near the astrology tower, sitting on the floor crying. She hasn't said a word since then, the poor dear."

_The astrology tower? _Thought Harry, _That wasn't anywhere near our class this morning. _Harry took Hermione's hand, to which she didn't even notice. She just continued staring out the window, like his hand went right through hers and she didn't feel a thing. It was just at this moment Harry actually got a good look at her. In the still morning light, her hair was damp and sticky with tears so that it hung in limp strands. Her face completely expressionless, no hint of feeling or emotion. But there was something about her eyes, something different. As Harry was just about to take a closer look he was suddenly jarred away from his thought by Ron, who had turned to Harry as Madam Pomfrey left the room.

"What the hell happened to her?" he asked. Hermione didn't move.

"Hermione?" Ron waved a hand in front of her face. No reaction.

"Maybe she's petrified. Remember, like when the basilisk did that to her." Ron suggested.

_No that couldn't be, _Harry said to himself, _petrified ppl CAN'T move... she can, she just doesn't want to. _

"Oh, not you too!" Ron huffed. "I'm going to get us some food, I'm sure she has to eat sometime. Do you want anything?"

Harry didn't reply, he just kept staring into those eyes as if there was some sort of picture in them that was too small to make out. What was so strange about them? They were still the same color, the same Hermione. _It's as if her eyes are deeper...open from the inside almost._ When Harry realized this he looked up again at Hermione and was startled to realize she was staring right back at him.

"Hey, you moved." He said with a grin, but to no avail. She said and did nothing. Just stared at him, into his eyes, like her eyes were trying to tell him something her lips could not. Harry felt helpless, lost to her, the reality of it hitting his chest like a wrecking ball. He missed her. He was so deep into his loss, his thoughts of such painful lonliness even for those few minutes of not hearing her beautiful voice, that he didn't stir when Ron came in with two plates of food. He didn't stir when Madam Pomfrey made a tray of some of the food for Hermione. And then, the tiniest of movements violently roused his attention.

A single tear streaming down her face, gleaming with the faintest light, that sparkled like a dying star. And the slightest expression of an extreme amount of desolation, that broke the hearts of everyone in the room instantly.


	3. Photograph In The Fog

"Please tell us the matter Hermione!" Harry pleaded, through tears he almost wasn't holding back. He stroked her hair as he begged her to talk to them in half-heaved whispers of sobbing. She continued to look at him for a few more lingering seconds before she turned her attention back to the window. Harry hung his head in emotional defeat and allowed himself to be led off by Ron into the hallway.

"I can't get through to her." Harry whispered in desperation.

"Nobody can mate," Ron said, trying to comfort Harry the best he could. "She had more interaction with you than she did with anyone else, you know. The weird thing is how she got this way; nobody even saw her walking towards the astronomy tower. She apparently just appeared there and someone found her."

"Who?"

"Professor Trelawney," Ron smirked. "She's been telling everyone she comes across about how Hermione had a 'vision'." As soon as Ron said the Professor's name Harry was off in search of her. He HAD to get some answers, ridiculous or not.

As soon as Harry walked up to Professor Trelawney's door it swung open. "I KNEW you would be coming." She said, dramatically. "I see that you want some information about your friend. I knew she had the third eye!"

"Hermione was terrible at divination!" Ron exclaimed.

Professor Trelawney waved her hand at him, "Sometimes the person doesn't have to have daily talent to be suddenly hit with one or two powerful prophecies or visions." She coughed rather loudly, blushing, and then cleared her throat just as loudly.

"When I found her, she was sitting outside the doorway to the astronomy tower... crying. No! Sobbing. It was so very sad. I came up to her and said, 'Child, what is wrong? Why are you crying so?' but she didn't say anything. She just sat there and stared into the darkened doorway, sobbing. So I went up to investigate, naturally I didn't find anything out of the ordinary. It's not what she saw in the room, it's what she saw in her mind's eye that upset her so."

"You must be kidding me..." Ron grumbled, eyes rolling. Harry just listened, thinking, 'If Hermione had been in the astronomy tower, what could she even have seen in the middle of the day?' So many things weren't making sense; it was making Harry's head spin.

"Did you notice anything else, Professor?" He asked, grasping eagerly for any bit of information left unsaid.

"Well, there was one thing she was doing as I found her, but I thought it was just because she was crying." Trelawney started, "She had her hands over her eyes, like a child that had seen something terrifying and was trying to hide from it."

As the boys left Professor Trelawney's office, they promised to let her know when Hermione started talking about her 'vision'. They headed back to the Gryffindor common rooms for some much needed rest, or so Ron thought. Harry broke off to go down to the hospital wing again saying that he would be back later, and that Ron should get some rest and he'll come back with any more information he had. Ron of course started to protest, after all he cared about Hermione too, but he knew this was Harry code for 'I want to be alone with Hermione right now.' Ron knew better by now, since Harry was always too confused about his feelings to say anything. So he headed back to the dorms, while he watched Harry sulk down the corridor away from him.


	4. I Was Lost To Begin With

As Harry scuffled down the darkened corridor, his mind swimming with all the different puzzle pieces of information they'd gathered today. Nothing seemed to make any sense, not a single fact matched any of the others. What was she doing by the astronomy tower in the middle of the day? How could she have gotten all the way across the school from the class she did have in ten minutes and still have time to see anything? If there wasn't anybody in the tower, and nobody around the tower what could she have seen anyway? Harry shook his head to clear it the best he could. When he finally came up to the door of the hospital wing he stopped. Fingers on the door handle, he rested his forehead on the cool stone wall. Why couldn't he do it? He couldn't make her talk to him, being there would only be a waste of time. Time he could use to find out what happened and help. Not to mention seeing her like that without any additional information would only make him more upset. He pushed himself away from the door and continued walking into the dark.

His legs kept walking while his mind wandered, completely unaware of the body's separate motive. When Harry finally paused, his thoughts for a moment he looked around and realized where he was. Oh shit, I forgot the cloak. He walked faster to get out of the dungeons before Snape caught him lurking around after hours. As he tried to pass the potions room in a hurry, he didn't notice the black shaded figure standing in front of the doorway, and slammed into the mass.

"Potter!" Snape hissed. "I thought I heard the sniveling sounds of your mischief."

"Professor I-" Harry started.

"Eh, Eh, Eh, Mister Potter; enough of your drivel! Report to your common room at once and your detention shall be arranged in the morning!" And with that he turned a flick of his cape and was gone down the hallway.

That certainly is odd. Harry thought. Normally he would chastise me all the way up there and make a spectacle in front of Professor McGonagall right then and there. Not to mention his favorite part of taking away Gryffindor's house points for it. That IS odd. Harry started to go after Snape, cloak or no cloak; when he looked at the door to the potions room and got the first helpful idea of the day.

Harry ran as fast as he could back to the common rooms, hoping the whole way that he wouldn't have to wake Ron. He looked at his watch, it read 1:30, much later than it seemed. He had only left Ron to go see Hermione at 11:00. He dashed through the portrait, who harrumphed through her snores about how 'Years ago people went to bed at a respectable hour.'

"Ron. Ron. Get up," Harry shook his friend awake.

"Whuzzut? Harry? What the bloody hell are you doing at this hour?" Ron stumbled up.

"I have an idea on how to help Hermione." Harry spewed, getting Ron's attention at once. "Veritaserum."

"Veritaserum?" Ron repeated. "Isn't that not only incredibly difficult to make, but it takes forever. Hermione might be able to tell us something by then."

"Not if it's already been made." Harry started. "Doesn't Snape keep a little bottle of it in his office for the rare occasion the mood struck him to use it?" And with that the two boys spend the rest of the wee hours of the morning devising the plan to help Hermione the only way they knew how... with mischief.

With only a few hours of sleep in their heads, and a few nibbles of breakfast in their bellies, the two boys scurried as fast as their weary bodies could carry them to Hermione's room. Ginny followed behind them with a plate of food for Hermione.

"You've been awfully quiet about this Gin," Ron said, putting his arm around her.

"Well, there really isn't much to talk about now is there?" She snapped at him. Ron looked at his sister confused on why she was so mad.

"I've spent the most time with her you know, and nobody even asks me for what's going on! I swear you two have been so caught up in yourselves lately. Did you even think about how you haven't paid Hermione two seconds worth of attention other than assignment advice before this happened? And I bet you don't even care that I'm the only one that sat up with her all night last night while you got your beauty sleep!" Ginny practically screamed bursting into tears. "She was so upset you didn't even come by last night!"

"First of all," Ron said. "We pay plenty attention to Hermione, she's with us all the time. Secondly, that's not true; Harry went to see Hermione last night too. And how do you know how she felt? She won't say a word!"

"He most certainly did not! And you don't have to hear words to hear emotions, you dolt. It's called empathy, you should try it." She walked ahead of them, slamming the door to Hermione's room in their faces with a 'humph'.

Ron turned to Harry, "You didn't go see Hermione last night?"

"Well I couldn't have gotten any good ideas feeling helpless by her bedside. I took a walk and ended up by the potions room. I ran into Snape too, he acted really weird-"

All of a sudden Ginny burst through the door between them, sobbing. "She won't eat anything either! Are you happy now?" She cried as she ran off.

Harry and Ron both entered the room in concern. Hermione was, of course, right where they left her; staring out the window, seemingly oblivious to everything around her.

"I'll go see if she's ok." Ron nodded to Harry as he followed his distraught sister.

Harry got an update from Madam Pomfrey, which was pretty much no progress at all. And it was true; Hermione hadn't touched a bite since she came in. It was starting to show too. Her face was pale, and her body was shaky, but she still hadn't moved, hadn't given so much as a sign of acknowledgement to anyone who came her way. Harry sat down next to her, strategically in front of the window, and took her hand. All the excitement for potentially finding a cure drained out of him like bathwater. Hermione, having her point of focus cut off, turned and focused her attention on the floor instead. When Harry saw that she'd rather look at the floor than him, he bit back a small cry of guilt. Ginny was right, she had been sad he didn't come, he could feel it. Harry put his free hand on her chin and pushed her face gently upwards to look at him.

"I'm sorry." He whispered painfully.

She looked at him because she had to, he was holding her face. Still nothing on her changed, the words had no impact at all. Harry started to wonder if she could even hear him, that definitely would explain a lot, but the depth of her eyes said she could and therefore increasing Harry's guilt for not being there for her. She looked so small and weak, from no sleep and not eating, Harry could hardly stand it. He wanted to scream, shake her, beg her to stop, anything to make her better. But all he could do was sit there, and look at her. He was still holding her face when he noticed that it had changed slightly, if he looked closely he could tell it was the faintest degree of panic, tiredness, pain all rolled into one.

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but found all that happened was a slick warm trickle of fear and despair ran down his cheek, and no amount of air he could suck into his lungs could make it stop.


	5. Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining

"Ginny wait!" Ron called after her. He stopped dead as Ginny suddenly spun around and glared at him fiercely.

"Why are you so upset Ginny? I'm sorry for whatever it is, but please tell me. It's bad enough we have no idea what's going on with Hermione without worrying about you too!" Ron said as he grabbed her shoulders with both hands to steady her, and perhaps keep her from wailing on him.

"Do you ever think that it might be a little too late to apologize to Hermione? Do you know how hard she works for you two? No? I didn't think so! So, here's a little taste of Hermione's day before you realized she was even missing..." Ginny cleared her throat dramatically, "She does your homework. She researches your papers. She thinks of new spells for you to learn so you don't get yourselves killed. She makes sure you wake up on time for class. She makes sure you actually GET to class. And in between all that she has to eat, and take care of all her stuff! Yet, you don't even realize she's right next to you most of the time." Ginny trailed off, starting to sound defeated.

"Well no one asked her to be our mother!" Ron shouted, feeling strangely mad at Hermione all of a sudden, without really knowing why. He turned and started to leave, trying to figure out why he was so angry at Hermione for this.

"No one had to, she just cares." Ginny whispered after him.

Meanwhile, Harry found himself completely unable to move. Stunned by the look on Hermione's face, the mere thought that she might be sick and in pain, unable to let them know what was wrong. All he could do was lay his head in her arms and weep, out of frustration, out of defeat, out of an amount of love he didn't even know he had for her. Yet Hermione kept looking out the window, unaffected by his cries.

Harry wondered where all these feelings for Hermione came from; they were too powerful to just have appeared out of thin air. Over the course of the last few days Harry had begun to notice a difference between Ron and him. Ron was worried of course, and upset at the matter; but not devastated like he was. Why? Harry looked up at Hermione and realized that those feelings were always there, but they were usually just below the surface enough for his mind to stash them away elsewhere. Yes, that's right. Harry thought as he remembered many times looking at her and thinking about how beautiful she was or hearing her laugh and wanting to make her that happy forever. Even if they were only split-second thoughts, they happened a lot, and now Harry knew why.

He lifted his head and looked at her, grabbing her face softly with both hands; almost automatically. Harry smiled at her, a few residual tears still falling from his eyes. He pulled her face close to his and whispered in her ear, the words he almost couldn't believe he hadn't told her sooner.

"I love you."

The words lingered there for a few seconds, floating in the air like the sweet mist on a warm summer morning. Harry pulled his face back in front of her, propping his body up close to her face with his hand on the free space of the bed. As he looked at her he saw the first real change in emotion Hermione was able to muster. Shock. She stared at him with wide, quivering eyes, as if they were begging the moment to be real and not a dream. The two of them went on like that for a while; reality seemed to be standing still around this moment. Finally, Hermione looked down at the sheets of the bed slightly mystified, as the sadness that had been hanging over her slowly wrapped its hold back around her. But before she was completely lost again, Harry felt the light touch of her fingertips rub against his, and knew that his feelings were reciprocated.

"Please, find a way to let me know what's wrong." Harry pleaded. "I want to fix it."

All Hermione could do was sigh and close her eyes, falling asleep almost instantly. Harry continued to sit there, on the edge of her bed, stroking her hair and watching her sleep. Harry took solace in the fact that no matter how bad things got, that love for her would never stop, he finally felt complete.

Harry thought about the Veritaserum, and how Hermione would feel about taking it. He realized he had neglected to think of the effects in would have on her and if she would be willing to take it when he discussed it with Ron last. The last think Harry wanted was to force Hermione to do something just because he wanted answers. Harry realized that he was constantly sneaking around to find his own answers and putting those he cared the most for in unnecessary danger. Was it not enough that they were in constant risk from Lord Voldemort? But he had to put them in dangerous situations at school, the one place they were supposed to be safe, all for his selfish quests to find answers? Maybe some questions just need to be... asked.

At that moment, both Ron and Madam Pomfrey came in to check on Hermione. Harry quickly hushed them as to not wake her up.

"Oh the dear's finally asleep." whispered a pleased Madam Pomfrey. "I knew the dreamless sleep potion would work soon enough."

"Why give her such a strong potion?" asked a bewildered Ron, wondering why Hermione would need a potion to sleep at all.

"Well, the last couple times she's tried to sleep, she just wakes up a few moments later hyperventilating and crying up a storm. I'm sure Ginny mentioned that to you?"

"No." Ron muttered.

"Madam Pomfrey, I've been thinking about how to help Hermione talk, and I was wondering if you would listen to my idea." Harry interjected. "I was wondering if we could give her some Veritaserum and ask her what's wrong, would that work?"

As Harry asked Ron looked at him baffled, marveling on why Harry had changed his mind about last night's plan. Madam Pomfrey thought for a second and said,

"Well, if we gave Hermione a truth serum, and then asked her a question, if she has a voice she'd be forced to tell us the answer," Harry and Ron beamed. "But, if she does have a voice, you do have to wonder why she is choosing not to use it. Suppose there's a reason?" Madam Pomfrey gave a small smile to the boys and went about her work.

"Why did you change your mind about the plans we made?" Ron asked hurriedly. Harry pondered for a moment about how he was going to tell Ron about all his emotions at once.

"Well, I thought about it more today, and realized what were we going to do with it when we got it? I mean, we can't just shove it down her face and force the answers out. How would Hermione feel, she's already scared enough. How's Ginny?"

"Pissy." Ron sighed. "She's mad because Hermione does so much for us and we barely notice her, or something. We've never asked Hermione to be our mother; I don't understand why Ginny is so upset about it."

"No we've never asked her, but have you ever wondered why she does it anyway?" Harry looked at him, and Ron knew he was different. Harry had a dreamy, almost whimsical expression when he looked at Hermione.

"Love..." Harry whispered, more to himself than Ron. And as Ron got up to leave, he saw out the corner of his eye, Harry bend down and softly kiss Hermione on the cheek.


	6. Dreaming To The Beat Of Your Heart

The stone walls of the abnormally darkened corridor were spinning ferociously as Harry stumbled to the ground, unaware of how he got there. It was a slow, sickening spin that made all his surroundings look the same yet different, and each step knew not whether it was forwards or backwards. Harry could not comprehend where he was going or why, all he knew was he had to keep moving. No matter how sick he felt or how confused he became, he was vaguely aware that he was being pulled by a bigger and greater source; one of great importance calling him forward.

Ron lay on his bed and studied the ceiling, Harry's words still floating around in his head. "Have you ever wondered why she does it anyway...Love." It was true, he knew Hermione loved them, but somehow it just turned into something he didn't have to think about. Hermione was always there, she always had everything done. She made it look so easy; he never realized it might be hard for her to keep up. As Ron thought about these things, getting sleepier by the minute, he suddenly sat upright with concern. As he went over his daily memories of Hermione he swallowed hard and realized the only times he remembered her is when he needed something. He carefully went through each memory file from the last week, then month, straining to find even a snapshot of her when they weren't asking her for something. Well that's not really unusual, that's what friends do; they help each other. We've helped Hermione with loads of stuff too. He slowly went through each file again, as sadness and shame spread through his eyes, and knew that for a long time Hermione didn't exist when she wasn't needed.

Harry could barely tell where he was but he knew he had gotten to the right place. He laboriously climbed the stairs on all fours, fighting through the dizziness and disorientation, to what he understood was the most important role he'll ever play in the life of everyone around him. The darkness was overwhelming as he finally reached the top of the tower. It was an internal darkness that surrounded him as he looked out the window and could see the sunlight of day barely able to shine through the mass of the tower. Harry struggled to grab hold of the window as beads of sweat rolled down his face and into his eyes that seemed blank to the world but understanding of a world to come. He stared at the sunlight, watching as it was consumed by the bright red fog and blanket of new and dying stars alike.

Ron ran down the stairs towards the Gryffindor commons rooms in search for Ginny. He found her pacing in front of the fire, muttering to herself. The minute she saw him, she crossed her arms and scowled. When she saw the look on his face she softened a little. Ginny knew that Ron needed help, and being a big brother, and guy in general... didn't know how to ask for it. He walked over to her and hung his head in embarrassment and sadness at his loss for the basic understanding of his best friend's needs. As they sat down to talk, Ginny listened empathetically about all the things he could have done and helped him understand the things he can do.

Screams echoed through the tower as the overwhelming image seemed to surround his entire body. He only had a minute to realize that those screams were coming from him, though he could barely believe it. All he could feel was the burning hot pain on every inch of his skin and horrifying images that flipping through his mind, momentarily shredding his sanity into pieces. And through all this the worst was yet to come... and it was complete and defenseless knowledge that this was entirely his fault, and could have been prevented.

Ron lay in a slumped heap of wide eyes and still-standing tears on the Gryffindor common room couch, across from Ginny who was sitting cross-legged on the big chair by the fireplace. Concern for her brother wracked her face as she watched him stare at nothing and mutter to himself incoherently. He drifted off to sleep this way and Ginny levitated a blanket over her brother and went to bed herself.

As the clock shifted its hands to midnight Hermione tossed in her sleep, dreamless and vacuous. But even in her sleep, the dark knowledge that confined her to an unspoken existence tightened its grip plummeting her into a darkness that has no end. Harry, who had fallen asleep with his head on Hermione's chest, awoke with a start. He suddenly realized what stirred him; he had fallen asleep listening to Hermione's heartbeat, and woke up when it stopped.


	7. When Blue Fades To Grey

Harry barely had enough time to grab her in panic before the room turned into a blur of chaos. Harry was pushed to the side in confusion only able to process snippets of what was happening. Madam Pomfrey running past him, someone grabbing him and pulling him out of the room, sturdy commands being issued, and the flashing of wands all seemed to happen in an unattached fashion. Harry backed into the stone wall outside the room, sliding to sit on the floor, and closing his eyes to get away of the nauseating swim of undefined people and voices. His body trembling with panic he could barely feel the hands grabbing him by the arms and shaking him back to reality.

"Harry! Harry! Look at me! What's going on?" Ron screamed, realizing that all Harry could do was mumble inaudibly back. Ron paced in the hallway thinking about the last few minute's activities. He had woken up on the common room couch, apparently left there by Ginny. Slowly remembering why he was down there in the first place, he got up and prepared himself to put aside his own fears and be there for his friend. Noticing that it was nearly midnight he stepped out of the dormitories and headed down to hospital wing. He had just gotten there when he noticed too much activity in the room for this hour and Harry being shoved aside by a hurried Madam Pomfrey.

"Get him out of here." She calmly said to Ron in a strong, determined voice. And now both of their lives seemed to be hanging in the balance of this moment. Ron rubbed his face with both hands feeling like the last five minutes had lasted an eternity. While they waited for any news on what was happening, Harry still in a state of shock only able to sit on the floor with his head propped up against the stone wall. A few moments of agonizing silence and pacing Ron turned and violently slammed the nearest door with his fist.

"There's got to be something you can tell me Harry!" Ron gritted through his teeth. He glanced sideways at Harry who only hung his head in shame. Ron turned to persuade Harry a little further when the door to Hermione's room opened suddenly and Madam Pomfrey beckoned them in with a hushed tone. They moved forward with caution, afraid for what they might be facing when they entered. Harry turned to look at her hurriedly, only being able to see her lying in the bed, eyes closed. The image of her didn't really give him any answers to her well-being, but found it hard to take his eyes off of her anyway. As if he looked away she would disappear altogether.

"She's okay..." She said softly. Both boys look momentarily immensely relieved and then opened their mouths to speak simultaneously. But madam Pomfrey cut them off and whispered the answer to the question she knew they were both asking.

"I don't know exactly how to explain what happened, but somehow Hermione performed some very powerful magic while she was sleeping. Normally, you need a wand to transfer your abilities through a magical "amplifier" if you will. But, I don't know how, she transferred a great amount of magic with only her will. And it was too much for her weakened body to handle. She's okay now, but she really needs her rest, and I can see you boys need some as well. So say goodnight, and scurry of to your dormitory before you end up in here with her."

"What kind of magic did she do?" Ron interjected before Harry could leave to go sit by Hermione, as he was practically itching to do.

"I really can't say, because she didn't use a wand or say a spell, there's no way of telling what she did." And with that she turned and went back to her sleeping quarters. "Please say goodnight now and go get some rest yourselves."

Harry was at her side in a matter of seconds, mouthing whispered words of comfort. Ron walked over and sat next to Hermione and for a few moments just watched her sleep. He sat there and watched as Harry bent down and whispered an "I'll see you in the morning." and kissed her forehead. He didn't get up when Harry did to leave; he just sat there, trying to gain the courage again to say the things he wanted to say. He finally took a deep breath and leaned over towards her with his elbows on his knees. He hardened his steel blue eyes as he thought about how emotionally sick he felt. Sick of what was going on, sick of what had been going on until now. Here he was in his sixth year at Hogwart's and was still acting like it was his first year. And this is where it's left him, unprepared to handle tragedy so close to him, and unable to connect with one of the most amazing people he's ever known. He's dealt with chaos and danger before, they've been in some deadly situations, but he had always looked at them with the sense that things were going to work out for the better because the ulterior concept was too much for his young emotional state to handle. He just could never process something bad ever tearing them apart, and now the very thing he feared most was right in front him and all he had been able to do is sit there and watch it happen. He looked up with a new determination towards his life, starting here and now he wasn't going to let the childish fears of getting close to the people he cared about ruin what time he might only have left with Hermione.

"Hermione." He whispered, reaching out his hand and grasping hers gently. "I'm sorry I was never there for you. You deserve better than that, and always have. I care about you so much Hermione, it was always just easy to ignore that; easier that when we had to face things, not to admit how much you meant to me. You do Hermione, you mean the world to me. You know everything about me; you always have all the answers when I don't. You're always right behind me when I need someone there. And I promise you, I will be right here for you, whenever you need me." His last words cracked slightly with emotion as he bent down and laid his head on her shoulder and put his arm around her waist giving her a tight hug. Ron didn't see that in her sleep Hermione smiled slightly and sighed, finally calm.

Ron got up slowly a few minutes later and sleepily walked back to his own bed. When he walked into the common room, he smiled at the sight of Harry asleep on the couch with the poor attention-starved Crookshanks lying on his stomach purring softly. He walked up the stairs and graciously fell into his bed falling asleep almost instantly. On other the other side of the dormitories however, there was one person still awake. Ginny, lay on her bed clutching her wand in one hand, and murmuring unidentified words with an extreme amount of concentration. Beads of sweat dropped down the sides of her face and she bolted upright opening her eyes, smiling slowly and finally putting her wand back in the drawer by her bed.


	8. I'm Too Much Trouble To be Important

The soft morning light slowly made its way into Hermione's room the next morning. Its warmth woke her up, and her eyes fluttered open almost immediately as the sunlight touched her skin.

"Hermione sweetie, how are you feeling?" came the gentle voice of Ginny. "We were so worried about you! Don't worry, I'm sure Harry and Ron will be here as soon as they wake up." Hermione relaxed a little when she heard that, Ginny always knew what she needed, they knew each other so well.

"You know, you really terrified me last night. Not to mention Harry and Ron too, they were both at wits ends on what to do. You can't go scaring us like that again, ok!" Hermione looked at her hands like a child who had done something bad, but secretly believed it was the right thing to do. Hermione didn't look up when Madam Pomfrey came in to check on her, which preoccupied Ginny slightly; asking questions and setting the plate of food she was given on the table next to Hermione. When Madam Pomfrey moved on to the other students, Ginny looked back at her and noticed something different. A guilty face had been replaced with a mischievous little grin. Ginny just stood there, unbelievingly, while Hermione continued to stare at her hands looking utterly satisfied with herself.

Meanwhile, back in the Gryffindor dormitories, Harry awoke with a near-splitting headache. Groggy from the restless sleep he had gotten due to the night's circumstances, he glanced at the 7:30 placed hands on his watch. Deciding that it was rather pointless to try and get any more rest, he quickly got dressed and headed down to the Great Hall for some much needed nourishment. He ran into Ron, who had unfortunately awoken an hour before Harry, in the Gryffindor common room on his way down also.

"You look like you've been to hell and back, mate" Harry greeted him with a small grin. It was true, both of them looked rather like Professor Lupin always had... unshaven, disheveled, and as if a good night's rest had eluded them for a few years. They walked to the Great Hall in silence, Harry finally breaking it when they sat down to gather their breakfast items.

"Listen, something really strange happened to me before...well, you know." Ron looked up from his plate and mumbled a "Tell me about it!" through his food. "I had fallen asleep with Hermione, and had the weirdest dream... it felt more like a vision or something... like I was really there."

Ron gulped down the massive bite of waffle he had shoved in his face and said, "Well, where were you in this dream?"

"I don't really know. It felt like I was really sick and disoriented, but I had to keep moving. And there were stairs. Lots of stairs. And when I got to the top, it was like the room had turned into some kind of cloud of fire and red smoke... and there was death everywhere... and, it was all my fault..."

Ron looked at him with concern, "Did your scar hurt when you woke up? Do you think Voldemort might be getting in your head?"

"No, I don't think it was coming from Voldemort. When I have those kinds of dreams like I can feel the aura of evil, because of who it's connected with. This felt... I don't know. Scared." Harry finished his food and stood, grabbing a pumpkin muffin and wrapping it up in a napkin. Ron got up as well, already knowing where they were headed next.

The boys walked into Hermione's room a few minutes later, to see Ginny pleading with her to eat something from the plate of food lying next to her. Hermione of course showed absolutely no interest... and this greatly concerned all of them seeing that she had already lost 10 pounds in the week that she had been there. Harry came and sat on the edge of the bed, smiling at Hermione with exaggerated glee. She looked at him with mild curiosity, as he slowly pulled out the pumpkin muffin from behind his back, looking at it with mock surprise as if he didn't know it was back there. Hermione's face glowed slightly as she reached up and took the muffin from him. Ginny and Ron both giggled at his attempt of making her happy. All three of them smiled at the fact that it obviously pleased Hermione, as she began nibbling away at Harry's gift. They started mindlessly chatting with each other about how everyone's night had been, as Hermione (who seemed to the rest of them preoccupied with her muffin) watched them intently.

As the group talked, the boys noticed something anxious about Ginny. She looked as if she had a secret she desperately wanted to tell them but couldn't. As the small burst of conversation dwindled into a slightly awkward silence, all they could do now was turn and stare at the one person that could help the situation. Ginny impatiently wrung her hands as a few torpid moments crept by. Hermione looked up from her partially eaten muffin to stare right at the highly nervous Ginny. Tick. Tick. Tick. Moments fell away as the two girls stared unblinkingly into each other's eyes. Harry and Ron looked at each other in confusion, what had they missed in the few hours of sleep they got this week?

"What else do you want me to do!" Ginny suddenly broke down into sobs of frustrated anger. "Why won't you just tell us what's going on? Why keep playing us like puppets because you're too childish to handle whatever is going on?" Only inches away from Hermione now, Ginny felt Harry's hand grasp her wrist pulling her away from the distraught Hermione.

"What the hell has gotten into you Ginny? Why are you yelling at her?" Harry said loudly enough to snap her back into her senses. Ginny put her hand against her head, feeling slightly dazed from her outburst.

"I don't know," She half-laughed, half-cried. "I guess I just let my frustration get the better of me." Her lower lip trembled a little as she softly said she needed to be alone and should get some sleep.

Shaking away the thoughts of Ginny's peculiar state, he found Hermione back to the silent, depressed mess she started as; again with her face toward the window staring at the bullets of rain pounding against the castle. All he could do was slump into the empty chair at her bedside and wait for some kind of sign on how to help her.

Ron paced the floor, confused at his sister's behavior and at a complete loss on how to handle it. He knew Ginny knew something she wasn't telling them, no wonder she was so antsy when they came in this morning. He had to find out Ginny's secret, hopefully without making much of a mess of their relationship in the process. He leaned himself against the hard stone wall and got lost in his thoughts on how to go about that.

As Ron was thinking to himself about Ginny, Harry was thinking about everyone else. He laid his head on his hand and looked around the room. Ginny was so upset she had to leave, Ron was completely lost in thought and looked as though making any decisions on how to handle it could potentially kill him, he was even at a loss for words due to the sheer displacement of unidentified actions that needed to be taken. And of course Hermione looked as if she were in a different universe. No, because Hermione was practically in a different universe. Harry realized that everyone else was lost because she was lost. This was a scary thought indeed, if they couldn't even handle daily tasks without Hermione, how could they ever survive those events which threaten their lives? And would he even be alive now if he had never met her?

"Hermione, you aren't just the brains of the group... you're the very heart of it." He said to himself aloud without meaning to. Once glance at her was all it took to know she had heard what he said. Her wide eyes filled with desperate tears of depression and anxiety, her hands grasped the sheets around her as if she wanted to tear them to shreds. The sticky tears dripped onto the blankets covering her and as she squeezed her eyes shut to hide from the world, Harry saw her simply mouth the words, "Please, no." He was so distracted by Hermione's sudden attempt of communication he didn't notice Ron quietly slip out of the room in pursuit of Ginny; and some answers.


	9. Answers To Questions Never Asked

Something has to be done, and it has to be done now! Ron thought to himself as his legs briskly carried him to the Gryffindor Common Rooms. He got to the portrait in what felt like a matter of seconds, as he dashed through the portrait hole, he immediately ran up the stairs to find his sister. He prepared himself for a no-nonsense, firm conversation, right before the stair he stepped on fell out from under him and he came crashing down to the main room below... Only able to realize for a split second his folly before he hit the ground and all he could do was lie in a heap on the floor having the wind knocked out of him and listen to wailing alarm of the girls dormitories.

Ginny poked her head out of the doorway in defense mode at the alarm until she noticed who the poor sap on the floor actually was.

"Come to chastise my behavior? Well you got what you deserved." She said in a huffy voice, but helped him up regardless.

"I came to get some answers." He weakly got out, still out of breath from the fall. Ginny looked at the floor in embarrassment as Ron sat the big chair by the fireplace next to her.

"Tell me the truth Ginny." Ron demanded softly. She looked up at her brother and for the first time saw that look she had always loved about the brother she was inseparable from when she was little, Charlie. That look that was strong but not harsh, determined and caring at the same time. The look that said 'I know what's going on so don't try to hide from me, and if you tell me I'll help you' She had been waiting a long time to see that passion and protection in Ron's usually uncertain eyes. With that, she folded instantly.

"Hermione knows what's going on. She just; I don't know, she just can't deal with it. It makes me so angry, it's so childish for her to sit there and carry on like this when we can obviously help her with whatever is going on. I mean, Harry has had plenty of crazy and dangerous stuff happens, I think we can handle a terrifying piece of information or whatever she saw." Ginny crossed her arms and glared at the fire.

"How do you know Hermione knows all this, and that she really did just see something? Has she talked to you?" Ron sat on the edge of his chair. It would make sense that Hermione would speak to Ginny first.

"Well... not in words." Ron raised an eyebrow. "It's weird, it's like all I have to do is look at her and know exactly what she's saying and what she wants me to do. Oh no, no! It's not like I'm possessed, more like she's talking to me telepathically, but I can't hear her voice. Like last night..." She trailed off.

Harry was literally stunned at Hermione's "words". For a moment or two he couldn't even reach out and comfort her as she shook her head and squeezing her eyes shut like she was trying to shut the whole world away. Harry blinked his disbelief away and reached out for her trembling, tense form. He grabbed her by both shoulders firmly enough to get her attention and stared at her with such fierce determination, she was practically stunned.

"What do you mean Hermione? No what? Tell me! Please." Harry pleaded in frustration once more. Hermione was eerily calm as she looked at him with dream-like eyes. That look caught his attention and they sat there staring into each other as the room slowly turned into a swirling mass of hazy clouds. The newly formed haze of disconnected reality was completely unnoticed by Harry. He felt like he was in a daydream, where you're neither bothered or moved by what surrounds you but simply just there, watching it unfold. Harry slowly noticed they were no longer in the infirmary, and Hermione was walking ahead of him down a corridor. She moved ahead quickly and without hesitation to see if he was still behind her. Struggling to keep up, Harry had little time to realize where he was...Though the passageways and staircases looked familiar; Harry had never seen them before, not even on the marauder's map.

In what seemed like only a few seconds they had come to the very same staircase Harry had seen in his dream. As he finally caught up to the bottom where Hermione was standing he struggled to catch his breath enough to ask her what was happening. Upon opening his mouth more odd realizations came to him, letting him know the real Hermione was still in her bed in the infirmary. No sounds were audible when he tried to speak, and the "daydream" Hermione seemed to have exerted no effort in the brisk journey to the staircase. Looking closer she seemed to be the only source of light in the dark corridor, her skin taking on a pearly effervescent quality. She slowly moved her eyes upward towards the top of the stairs and then back on him, letting him know where to go. He finally took his eyes off of her to follow the movement of her eyes towards the hallow darkness of the floor above them, and when he brought them back to her she was gone.

Harry immediately darted up the stairs hoping that's where he would find the dream Hermione. He climbed for what seemed like an eternity, replicating the pain and anguish he had experienced before in his dream. Step after step of grueling insanity in his muscles and his hands finally felt the floor of the top. He pulled himself up and found something significantly different than his nightmare had predicted. There, by the window of the tower was the dream Hermione still shimmering in the darkness around her looking up at the stars that canvassed the night sky. She was dressed in dark red dress robes in which he had never seen before and her hair was laced with rose petals weaved between her soft curls. She seemed to be unaware of his presence as he moved closer to watch her. The first thing he took note of was the stars outside, it was a dizzying effect as everything in the room was stationary but night sky was spinning around them at lightening speeds. Stars, moons, planets looked magnified as they spun around the tower. He stood next to her mesmerized by the view, and as he turned around to examine the rest of the scene he noticed a tear that was frozen halfway down her face; unmoving. The tear looked like it was made of glass and sparkled ever so slightly on her softly glowing cheek. His eyes quickly scanned the whole of her, from her soft brown curls, to the sad look in her eyes, to the open locket on her neck. A locket? Hermione has never worn a locket before. He peered closer to the frozen Hermione to examine it. The pictures in the locket appeared to be muggle ones. The man and woman inside the locket looked strangely familiar; the girl with dark long curls smiling ever so slightly, and the man was a mass of dark hair, unshaven and serious. They looked about in their late twenties and resembled Hermione quite a bit. Confused, he scanned down to her hand in which her wand and a rose was held together. Her wand was the brightest part of the room and it glowed almost white hot, yet the rose was unaffected by the intensity of it. It actually appeared to be part of the wand itself, its stem fused with the wood at its tip. Harry noticed the tinniest of movements in this frozen room... a droplet of blood from Hermione's hand slid down one of the rose's petals and splashed onto the stone floor in slow motion. In the very second the droplet connected with the stone, the room dissolved around Harry dropping him back into the infirmary room in which things had started.

"Last night," Ron gulped. "You mean, when, she died?" Ginny looked down at her hands ashamed and nodded.

"What did you do?" Ron strictly said, a little more harshly than he meant to.

"I saved her." Ginny said angrily, more at Ron for the accusing tone than for keeping this important secret. "I took her wand because she "told" me something bad was going to happen. Somehow, I just knew what to do without being told."

"I see," Ron sighed. "Well, do you remember what spell you did?" Ginny thought for a moment and a forlorn look fell upon her face.

"I didn't do any spell. I just held her wand... it was like the wand did it on its own."

"Do you still have Hermione's wand?" He asked. Ginny nodded and went to her room to get it. A few moments later she ran to the top of the stairs looking down below at him terrified.

"It's not there! It was in my dresser... It's gone!" Ginny ran down to the common room, brother and sister looked at each other in shock for a couple seconds and then preceded towards the infirmary.

They ran down the hallway nearing Hermione's door and stopped dead as they nearly ran into a panicked Harry.

"She's gone..." He cried. "Hermione's missing."


	10. The Missing Half

A/N: WOW! I want to thank everyone who has reviewed and favorited and alerted and just WOW! I rain cookies down upon you all! ~ Your feedback means so much to me! Now ON TO THE ANGST!

~Hunnysuckle

* * *

><p>A school wide search for Hermione uncovered nothing. She was nowhere to be found. Harry paced the length of her infirmary room angrily muttering to himself about how impossible it was for a girl to simply just vanish into thin air. Ron was too busy comforting Ginny to notice Professor McGonagall briskly walk into the room.<p>

"Mr. Potter, the Headmaster would like a word with you, Mr. and Miss Weasley." She said softly. Harry paused in mid-pace and closed his eyes desperately hoping Hermione would be in her bed when he opened them. The guilt in his sad green eyes was obvious as he realized this wasn't some awful hallucination brought on by stress. Ron and Ginny followed Professor McGonagall into the corridor as Harry looked around the room once more and shuffled along with his friends.

"I wonder why he wanted to talk to Ginny first." Ron mused aloud as the boys sat outside Professor Dumbledore's office. "It probably has something to do with what went on with Hermione's wand. Weird that is. Not to mention what you saw Harry, I think this might have something to do with Voldemort." Harry snorted and slouched farther into his chair, arms crossed. All he could do was look at the floor and stew in his own tortured thoughts. How could Voldemort do this right in front of his face and he not even notice? How long was Hermione trying to tell him what was really going on? Why couldn't he protect her? The opening of the door disrupted Harry's darkest of inner battles.

"He wants to see Ron next." Ginny sniffled and hurriedly ran out of the room. Ron looked at Harry's still bowed head and gulped before heading through the door into Professor Dumbledore's office. Now alone, Harry stood and continued to pace thinking of what he could possibly say to explain his enormous mistake. He should have seen this for what it was. He should have been more careful. Mostly, he should have been close enough to Hermione to have known she was in trouble before any of this even happened. The ache in his head brought him back to his body. There he was, sitting on the floor. His hands grasped his dark, more than usual unruly hair, trying to pull all the self- loathing out of his mind. It was useless though, no amount of self- inflicted pain could tear the hatred out of his heart.

"Uh, mate?" Ron said curiously, "You're up." Ron looked with great concern at his best friend. Harry nodded, pulled himself up slowly, and turned to face his irresponsibility. He took a deep breath and stepped into the office. A quick look around showed that all of the portraits were empty, a sign that they had been sent away so as not to overhear any important piece of information given or received. Dumbledore sat at his desk, eyes on Harry as he sat down in the chair across from him. Harry trembled as he spoke.

"You wanted to see me Professor?"

"Harry do you know what is going on here?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

Harry looked at his feet and whispered, "He's kidnapped Hermione hasn't he." He bit his lip. Dumbledore sighed and took off his half- moon spectacles.

"Harry in this world there is both great evil and great good alike. Lord Voldemort is unfortunately the great evil of our time, but where is the good dear boy? This has been a fantastic mystery to me. It's the force that empowered your parents to save you, and it empowers you to save us all. I don't doubt that Voldemort has some part in this, but it is the forces of good that are behind Miss Granger's disappearance." Harry stared at him in confusion and anger. How could Hermione's suffering be a good thing?

"What do you mean Professor?"

"I mean Mr. Potter, that it is no accident the two of you became friends. Your destinies are intertwined. Harry what I tell you here today must only remain between us, do you understand? Not even a word of it to Mr. or Miss Weasley. Miss Granger must be protected at all costs." Harry swallowed hard and nodded. "You know of the prophecy many people believe to be about you. There was one other prophecy made that day." He stood and walked to a table and among the many gadgets lifted an orb that looked similar to what he was given the last time he and Professor Dumbledore talked. This one was shimmering so white it looked like it would freeze in his hand. As Professor Dumbledore put it in Harry's hands its warmth showered over him, putting him into a dream like haze as he listened to the thick syrup-like words change his life.


	11. A Corridor Of Questions

**_A/N:_**Oh my gosh guys! I'm soooooo sorry for not posting in like forever. Please don't hate me! I had some living situation issues and just now got to a point where I'm not a frantic crazy mess. Anyway, here's the next chapter. I hope you guys like this one, it has an introduction to my OC. I thank you guys again for all your reviews and PMs and favorites and stuff. All your feedback really makes my day! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own the plot bunnies and my beautiful OC, but sadly that is all.

* * *

><p><em>"Dead Magic? I didn't know there was such a thing. How could magic die anyway? Did people just stop using it? No, that would be illogical, all magic has a purpose. What if, people lost the ability to do it. Even the greatest wizards of all time couldn't perform this magic but I can? That doesn't make sense! I don't have half the skills of most of the wizards I know, how could I know how to do something no one else has in thousands of years? Not even you Professor Dumbledore. And how do I do it again when I don't even know how I did it in the first place! Why do I have to save the world?! <em>

_Oh. I See. _

_I just don't understand how I am supposed to save everyone with magic that I don't know how to use and no one knows how to teach me. Oh don't be ridiculous, magic this big doesn't just come naturally. _

_Wait! That's it? That's all the information I get? But what am I supposed to do now?" _

Harry was in awe of what he heard, the man's dry voice seemed somewhat familiar but he couldn't place it. He thought those words over and over, repeating them until the verse in its entirety was part of his very soul. His head was swimming with the enormity of so many more events in his life that he had just moments ago thought were solitary pieces, coming into a devastating picture. As he walked down the corridor in solitude, he felt as if those words were tied around his body, his mind, his heart. They constricted his muscles and he could not think of anything else. He stopped and looked out into the courtyard at his fellow classmates talking to each other, laughing and enjoying the sunshine. So many times he remembered looking out and wishing with all his might that he could be normal like them, but now his heart was filled with a new sadness. He had been different his whole life, different in the muggle world, different in the wizarding word, he had never known anything else. Now his best friend, the girl that he loved had lost that which Harry never even knew. She was no longer the normal book-loving girl in class; she had been dragged into Harry's world of stares and murmurs, headlines and enemies.

So many questions were racing through his mind he could hardly walk straight. Where was she? Was she safe? Was she really in a tower somewhere like he saw, or was that just a dream? And if so, who was keeping her there? Why was he of all people not allowed to know where she is? They were in this together after all. Harry shook his head to try and clear it. It was no use. More and more questions piled up in his mind, begging to be answered. He felt utterly alone, full of information he couldn't share with those he was closest to and forbidden to be near the only other person who was a part of it. And that, of course brought him to his next series of questions... Why now? If Dumbledore had the prophesy all this time why hadn't she, or any of them been told? Did Hermione even know about the prophesy yet? Oh no, what if she was frightened! Harry tried not to think about Hermione all alone; not knowing where she was, taken by strangers and then told her life would never be the same. Though in all reality, that was probably exactly what happened. The pain in his chest at those thoughts forced him to acknowledge different questions. Could this have happened because he loved her? Would things have been different if he loved someone else? Or did he love Hermione because he was destined to? Did she even love him the same way he loved her? He would feel terrible if his love for her bound her into only his life against her will. And if that were so, could he stop loving her so she could be free of all this? Loving her was such a new development maybe he could just reverse it and none of this would ever happen to her. Was his love new? Maybe it had been there the whole time and he had never wanted to notice?

Reluctantly coming to the conclusion that it would be impossible to stop loving her, his anxiety turned to the prophesy itself. He propped his elbows up on the banister ledge and closed his eyes, letting the words of her prophesy tighten their bind on him. His lips moved along with them as they fluidly tied knots around the fiber of his very being, each word like an icy thread of spider's silk binding him to their destiny.

"And stands a maiden of great love,

a brightened star in the darkest cove.

She is his courage and his strength

and must be kept more than arm's length.

The fool will ignore her silent word

the evil one will conquer should she be heard.

So much she has to teach,

but not a word to speak.

Her future written in his past,

for hearts so true shall always last.

Great sacrifice she gives,

for the one she loves, the boy who lives."

Despite his fear over those words, Harry had to smile. Hermione had always been the one to teach them, to help them understand, but what could she teach the whole world? And if this lesson is so important why was she not allowed to say anything? How could Voldemort gain enough power by Hermione's voice to conquer the world? His eyes widened in worry at the most important question. What was she sacrificing for him? Harry sighed and suddenly noticed how heavy his head had become with the weight of all these questions that had no answers. He continued to walk down the corridor much faster than he felt he could have been able to. Pressing him forward was a question that could be answered. What were his best friends told?

A few moments later Harry walked into the Gryffindor common room, shoulders weighted. Ron and Ginny were the only ones in there, the room was silent as he approached them though he had a feeling it was just as quiet before he entered. He collapsed onto one of the chairs and looked into the fire.

"Well... What did Professor Dumbledore tell you?" Ron finally got out nervously. Harry scoffed and looked at them with that 'Sorry guys but its confidential' face they were used to getting after Harry's long talks with the headmaster. Ginny sighed and said,

"Well at least I know I didn't do anything wrong with Hermione's wand, strange as it was." Harry looked up immediately interested. Ron of course wasn't fazed, having already heard this first thing after meeting up with her.

"Well, what happened?!" Harry practically shouted, feeling teased with the information she held. Less than thrilled at the lack of information Harry could provide her in return, Ginny breathed in and began her story of what had happened.

"Well, apparently Hermione had been using a very complex form of magic she wasn't even aware of. Professor Dumbledore said that this sometimes happens when the caster is under great turmoil and stress; it's like a natural instinct or something. So when Hermione needed something done and couldn't do it herself, she told me what to do and how to do it for her."

"Like the imperious curse?" Harry interjected. Ginny shook her head.

"That's what I thought of first too, but Dumbledore says it's not like that because its not a spoken demand forced upon another. He said its more like a plea, a cry for help. And its only when the person who is asked, me in this case, is willing to help does the spell succeed."

"That's incredible," Harry exclaimed. "I didn't even know that kind of magic existed."

"Dumbledore said it's kind of a lost art," Ginny shrugged. "Not a lot of people know how to do it, the school doesn't even teach it. She must have read about it in a book, lucky for her she studies so damn much." They all laughed at that, finally releasing a little tension among them.

"That's really all he told me, and that she wasn't coming back for a long time because Voldemort is after her now too."

"Did he say why Voldemort wants Hermione?" Harry leaned forward in anticipation; maybe he'll finally get some answers.

"No. He just said she knows something important, she saw something she wasn't supposed to see. Though I didn't know there was a place safer than the school to keep her. It's very puzzling. What about you Ron? Weren't you in the middle of telling me what he said to you?" Harry sat back, disappointed but not surprised.

"Um. Yea. Well he really didn't say anything much different about what's wrong with Hermione than you Gin, wanted by Voldemort and all. But he did say something peculiar about you Harry." Harry looked confused and felt suddenly on the spot as his two remaining friends stared at him.

"Um. Whaaaaat?" He said cautiously.

"Well, he told me to keep you from finding a way to associate in any way with Hermione. Make sure you don't go searching for a way to contact her or find her. I don't know why mate, but you are supposed to be kept as far away from her as possible." Ron looked down, embarrassed.

"What the hell?!" Harry shouted in frustration, not really at his friends but at the situation. "What did I do to put Hermione in so much danger that I'm forbidden to try and rescue her?!" No one answered him. Ginny looked up and asked him about anything he could tell them about his discussion to try and change the subject. Harry stood with his back turned to them, looking into the fire fists and jaw clenched with frustration.

"All I can say is that it's my fault Hermione is in this mess." And at this Harry stormed upstairs to the boy's dormitory. Ginny looked at her brother with pleading eyes to go after him and moments later Ron entered the room to find the window open, its curtains wafting around it in the breeze; the invisibility cloak and broom gone, and no Harry.

_"Be prepared to fight. There's still a chance he might find us here. His sense of her is strong, and it leads him to her whether he knows it or not." A young looking woman said strongly. Her shoulder length blonde hair shone like gold in the flickering lamp light of the watch tower. Though she looked less than 25 years of age she was the oldest and most experienced Guardian in the vicinity, and it was her job to keep the others on their guard. Her green and gold tunic made her hazel eyes pop with dark greens, speckled like leaves across a dirt road. Her expression was stern and weary yet glimmers of softness shone in the candle light. Upon seeing the girl she knew how gravely important this mission was, and she took it with a fierce determination to succeed, even at the cost of her own life. It was her livelihood to do so; the Order of Angels demanded it of her since birth. She knew no different. Her grasp tightened around her golden staff, her Crest of Power balanced in it own light on the top. This Crest was her greatest accomplishment, given to those Guardians who proved themselves worthy of the Order. Its shimmering glow reminded her who she was, and what she was made for. Its symbol was simple but powerful, not unlike herself; a golden filigree heart, in its center white hot glow of her magic. Her eyes hardened as they followed the dark figure fly across the stars, she chuckled to herself slightly. _

_"Silly boy, that invisibility cloak can't hide you from the Order." And with that she took a battle stance, ready and waiting, with her staff raised horizontally poised for battle._


	12. The Heat Of Darkness

**A/N:** Finally posting another chapter! Ahhhh! I'm so sorry this is taking so long. If you guys want constant updates as well as other fanfictions, poetry, and commissions, please follow me on Tumblr at **menageriemadhouse . tumblr . com **I promise I haven't abandoned this story, it's just taking me forever to write it. Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter, you've certainly waited long enough for it. I appreciate all the reviews and favs. Hopefully the next chapter won't take so long.

* * *

><p>Harry flew as fast as he could muster, desperately hoping the fierce wind would clear the clutter of emotions in his head as it burned against his face. He didn't know where he was going, nor did he care. <em>Yea Harry...This is real mature of the 'Chosen One' running away from your problems. All because you were told you could never be with her. 'How is facing that harder to do than facing Voldemort himself?' <em>He yelled at himself until he didn't recognize where he was. He stopped and hung in mid-air as he looked around wondering how he was going to get back. There was nothing but sky for miles, no buildings, no flickering lights in the distance just stars surrounding him. As he vaguely scanned they sky he noticed that a section to his right was darker than the rest of the night sky. As he stared into the dark spot his eyes widened as the sky itself rippled and Harry was nearly knocked off his broom by a blast of what he could only describe as pure energy. Frantic, Harry pulled himself securely back onto his broom and swerved to the side before another blast could make contact. Who the hell was attacking him in the middle of... _death eaters_. Harry realized as he narrowly missed another shot. _It's the only thing that makes sense; I left school grounds in the middle of the night like a bloody idiot.  
><em>  
>Harry pulled out his wand and prepared to fight, quickly flying in a zigzag pattern to avoid the almost steady bolts of energy still being fired at him. He soared as high as he could and darted in the direction of the on-coming spells but saw nothing. <em>Where are they coming from?<em> A few minutes of searching for his attackers was all it took for him to realize that if it were death eaters they certainly would be surrounding him by now. No, this was different. In fact, Harry didn't notice any actual spells being used at all. Determined to get to the bottom of this he flew skillfully towards the portion of sky that caught his attention and into the blackness.

As he flew closer to the source of the mysterious attack, he felt the air change around him. He felt the electricity in the air, stifling heat coming in waves. It was if he had flown into a thunderstorm yet there was no rain or lightening, not even a distant rumble of thunder; only the stars surrounding him and a rippling of dark air right in front of him. Cursing himself under his breath, he closed his eyes and catapulted himself into the ominous darkness.

* * *

><p>There was a familiar flurry of panic amidst the Gryffindor common room, Professor McGonagall pacing the floor in her night-clothes, wringing her hands in furious concern. "Are you absolutely sure he gave no indication as to where he was going?" she asked fully knowing before the words were spoken what the answer would be. It was typical of him; to act before thinking, to take out his emotions with reckless abandon. She mentally shuttered to think of the dangers he could be facing this very moment, yet there was nothing in her power to do. Professor Dumbledore was out of the castle until tomorrow on an important meeting. The best thing to do at the moment was to not stir unnecessary panic from the other students.<p>

"Well, off to bed with the both of you Mr. and Ms. Weasley. Professors Flitwick and Snape are canvassing the grounds, but that is all we can do for the time being." She gestured them to retire as the brother and sister looked at each other, warily deciding if that was really the best course of action and then miserably accepting that it was.

* * *

><p>When Harry opened his eyes he nearly fell off his broom at the sight before him. The rippling darkness of sky was apparently some type of portal through which he had entered an extremely different setting. The full moon was shining so brightly that Harry could clearly see every detail on the enormous golden tower laid out before him. Its features glittering softly, it almost looked like it was glowing iridescently; maybe it was. He quickly scanned over the spiraling staircases and intricate facades, his eyes followed the flow of architecture up to the highest point and the lit window within. With new determination he flew low and stealthily toward the tower, feeling strangely drawn to whatever was inside.<p> 


End file.
